* Out of the original 12 Tribes of Israel Ten were lost. Two
remained. The present-day Jews are descended mainly from the two
remaining Tribes of Judah and Benjamin.

* The Khazars were a Kingdom in southern Russia many of whose
leaders converted to Judaism. The Khazars were descended from the
Lost Ten Tribes. The Khazars were blood-relatives of the Picts who
went to Scotland, and of the Anglo-Saxons, and of peoples in
Scandinavia.

* In addition to the Khazars, many other converts to Judaism
through the ages were descended from assimilated Jews or from members
of the Lost Ten Tribes.

* Most of the Lost Ten Tribes migrated to Northwest and Western
Europe and their descendants are now in those areas or in North
America, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.

* We do not claim that all residents of the said nations are
descended from Israel. We do however affirm that most descendants of
the Lost Ten Tribes are residents of those nations. On the whole
they are unaware of their Israelite Identity. Even so in the course
of history the Israelite origins of peoples in those areas have
influenced national developments and national characteristics.

* The Tribe of Joseph was divided into two other Tribes: Ephraim
and Menasseh. People from ALL of the Israelite Tribes congregated in
North America but in general the U.S.A. is dominated by Menasseh.
Britain has characteristics of Ephraim.

* Reuben was important in France, Issachar in Switzerland, Benjamin
in Belgium, Zebulon in Holland, Dan in Denmark, Naphtali in Norway,
Gad in Sweden, the country of Finland was influenced by the Tribes of
Simeon, Issachar, and Gad; Simeon, Dan, and Ephraim were important in
Ireland.

* There is a need for the present-day "Jews" of Judah and the Lost
Ten Tribes to recognize each other, and to work towards
re-unification and reconciliation.

* Proof exists confirming "Brit-Am Israel" Identity beliefs.
Some
of the evidence has been presented in works by Yair Davidy such as
"The Tribes" (1993), "Ephraim" (1995), and "Lost Israelite
Identity"
(1996), as well as in articles in our journal "Tribesman". Much
additional evidence is available and needs to be uncovered and
published. Our sources include the Bible, Talmud, Midrashim,
Commentators, Classical Greek and Roman historians, Chroniclers,
Legends, Linguistics, Archaeology, and where pertinent racial and
other scientific studies.

* Even though much of the evidence has been revealed by ourselves it
is not ours alone. Our proofs have never been properly refuted. The
basic claims we have made are irrefutable. If one cannot deny our
claims and there is nobody else who can it follows that one should
accept them. This means that the identity of the Lost Ten Tribes of
Israel with western peoples should be acknowledged. Once this
acknowledgment is forthcoming it is possible to discuss whatever
practical conclusions need to be made.

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN LEARNING MORE, IN DISCUSSION, AND/OR IN
JOINING "BRIT-AM ISRAEL", please make contact by Return Mail.

+++++++++++++++++++++++

NOTE FROM EDDIE:

FYI: Yair Davidy is an ORTHODOX JEW. He does NOT believe in:

#1) Replacement theology
#2) Christian British Israelism

Yair Davidy / Brit-Am / Orthodox Jews DO believe in:

#1) The Restoration of BOTH houses of Israel in the future (the
Messianic redemption or the Ingathering of the Exiles) (Ezekiel
37:15-28) when the house of Israel (The Ten Lost Tribes) join
themselves to / with the house of Judah in the end of days.

Recently, I ordered from Brit-Am and read the first three issues of
the MAGAZINE BRIT-AM. The articles and the information in the magazine
was OUTSTANDING.

It is VITAL in these days in which we live to understand that the
belief in the restoration of both houses of Israel / Messianic
Redemption / Ingathering of the Exiles and the reuniting of Ephraim
(Ten Lost Tribes) with Judah and Ephraim returning to Torah is a
fundamental and foundational belief of Orthodox Judaism. It is one of
the 13 articles of Jewish faith and a prayer for the Messianic
Redemption / Restoration of both houses of Israel is prayed THREE
times a day by Orthodox Jews.

I would HIGHLY recommend that our newsgroup members subscribe to the
Brit-Am magazine to gain a greater understanding of Orthodox Jewish
belief regarding this issue. In a recent edition of the magazine,
Brit-Am stated that they have come to the conclusion that the primary
religion of the Ten Lost Tribes today is Christianity.

Brit-Am declares that this information is VITAL to your
understanding of the Bible and Hebraic Heritage Ministries Int'l
agrees. Please consider obtaining the first 3 issues of the Brit-Am
magazine and subscribing to future editions.

Yours for the restoration of both houses of Israel,

Eddie Chumney
Hebraic Heritage Ministries Int'l

*********************************************************

BRIT-AM DISCUSSES THE MIGRATION OF THE TEN LOST TRIBES

by Yair Davidy (an ORTHODOX
JEW)

Isaiah-9 no. 1: The Stages of Exile

[ISA 9:1] BUT THERE WILL BE NO GLOOM FOR HER THAT WAS IN ANGUISH. IN
THE FORMER TIME HE BROUGHT INTO CONTEMPT THE LAND OF ZEBULUN AND THE
LAND OF NAPHTALI, BUT IN THE LATTER TIME HE WILL MAKE GLORIOUS THE WAY
OF THE SEA, THE LAND BEYOND THE JORDAN, GALILEE OF THE NATIONS.

This verse is referring to the Exile of the northern Tribes of
"Israel" who lost their identity and became known as "The Lost Ten
Tribes of Israel".

The Exile of the northern tribes to different parts of the Assyrian
Empire was in stages. As background we will impart part of what we
understand concerning these stages of exile.

From the book:
"The Tribes" (2nd edition)

Chapter one
THE EXILE

The original Twelve Tribes of Israel had split into two kingdoms.
Two tribes comprising "Judah" were in the south, and the ten tribes of
"Israel" were in the north. The Ten Northern Tribes were entirely
taken away by the Assyrians to places in northern Mesopotamia, to the
Caucasus area and to eastern Iran. The Bible says that, "The King of
Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away into Assyria, and placed
them in Hala, and in Habor, and in the cities of the Medes" (2-Kings
17;6). The Bible also mentions "Hara" (1-Chronicles 5; 26) in eastern
Iran as a place of exile. The Talmud and archaeological findings
enable the identification of these places of re-settlement. Shortly
after the exile and re-settlement every one of the said places became
a centre for a group of peoples who then appeared for the first time.
They are known to history as the Cimmerians, Scythians, and Guti or
Goths. It will be shown that these entities were (at least in part)
the Lost Ten Tribes of Israel!

Chapter 16:

The Northern Ten Tribes of Israel had been conquered and exiled by
the Assyrians. They were taken at first to several areas which are
designated, by Biblical and Talmudical sources, as Halah, Habor, the
River Gozan, Cities of the Medes1, Hara2, the Snowy Mountains3,
Caspii4, Mountains of Darkness5, Har-Mannae6, Sambation7, Afrikey8,
and so on. The said names often prove to be alternative appellations
for the same or adjacent locations.

The exile of the northern Israelites by the Assyrians is described in
the Book of Kings that speaks of the capture of Samaria and exile of
Israel. "Samaria" was the name of the northern Israelite capital and
is sometimes used as an eponym for the Northern Kingdom.

"The King of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away into
Assyria, and placed them in Hala, and in Habor, by the river of
Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes" (2-Kings 17:6).

The exile took place in several stages and before the exile
of
"Samaria" (Menasseh, Ephraim, and Zebulon), the Tribes to the north (Dan, Asher,
Issachar, and Naphtali) had been taken away by the Assyrian monarch
who "carried them captive to Assyria" (2-Kings 15; 29). Likewise, the
tribes east of the Jordan (Reuben, Gad, and half Menasseh) had been
carried "unto Halah, and Habor, and Hara, and to the river Gozan"
(1-Chronicles 5:26).

The place of exile nominated as "Assyria" refers to the
province by
that name which encompassed most of Mesopotamia9 and extended into the
Zagros Mountains in the east, while in the west it reached unto the
shores of the Black Sea. Halah, Habor, the River Gozan, and many of
the cities of the Medes were within the confines of "Assyria" or close
to its fringes. "Hara" was much further to the east in the region
straddling the borders of present day Iran and Afghanistan. "Hara"
encompassed places named Aria, Ariana, and Arachosia, by the Greeks10.
"Hara" was called "Haraiva" and "Hare" by the Persians11,
and known
under its correct name "Hara" to the Medes12, just as it is still
called "Hara" by the locals today13. It is crossed by the Hari Rud or
"River of Hara" and contains the city of Harat.

The Assyrians ruled the Hara area and all of the
surrounding region
and settled a portion of the Israelite tribes there in, specifically
part of those tribes from east of the Jordan: Rueben, Gad, and half
Menasseh, since only concerning their exile is the name "Hara"
mentioned:

"The God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of
Assyria, and
the spirit of Tiglath-pilneser of Assyria, and he carried them away,
even the Reubeni, and the Gadi, and the half tribe of Menasseh, and
brought them unto Hala, and Habor, and HARA, and to the river of Gozan
unto this day" (1-Chronicles 5;26).

Assyrian control of the Hara area is proven by inscribed claims of
Assyrian monarchs to have received tribute from Magan and Meluhha
which nations (in neo-Assyrian nomenclature) were either by the Indus
delta or to the east of it14. Hara adjoined Bactria and Roman and
other accounts related that the Assyrian Semiramis (wife or widow of
"Pul"): had conquered Bactria to the north of Hara as well as parts of
India to its east15. The Assyrians sent frequent expeditions to Mount
"Bikni" meaning the "Mount of Lapis Lazuli" and most (if not all) the
lapis lazuli of Assyria came from Badakhshan to the northeast of
"Hara"16. According to Greek and Iranian sources the Assyrians had
planted colonies in the region of Kabul and Gandhara to the east of
Hara17. Indian scripts also recall the "Asurya" with their god "Asura"
(meaning the Assyrians with their deity "Ashur") who had colonies in
Hara and Sakastan18. Assyrian cultural influences in this area and
cultural influences from this area on Assyria confirm the Assyrian
presence in this region19.

Extracts from the book: "Lost Israelite
Identity":

"Hear, this word, ye kine of Bashan, that are in the mountain of
Samaria, which oppress the poor, which crush the needy, who say to
their husbands, Bring, and let us drink.

"...he will take you away in big ships and your posterity in fishing
boats.

"Each woman will be carried straight out through the breaches and
cast out beyond the mountains of Mannae"*11 (Amos 4;1 3). .

* Amos (4:3) refers to the "kine of Bashan" "in the mountain of
Samaria"
(Amos 4:1) who shall be cast "into the palace" . "Into the palace" has
been translated from the Hebrew "Harmona" which is also translatable
as saying "To the Mountain of Mannae" and so it is understood in the
Talmudically-approved Aramaic version of Yehonathan. Mannae was in the
general area of Armenia to which Jewish and local sources say the
Israelites were taken.

This verse also speaks of the exiles being taken away in ships:

"Hear this word, ye kine of Bashan, that are in the mountains of
Samaria, which oppress the poor, which crush the needy, saying to
their husbands, bring and let us drink...the days shall come upon you,
that he will take you away in TsINOT [i.e."large boats" in Hebrew*3*]
and your remnant in SIROT DUGAH [i.e. "Fishing boats" in Hebrew*3]
And your breached remnant will be taken away one woman for each other
and they shall be cast out into the mountain of Mannae"4 (Amos 4;1 3).

The verse in the Hebrew may therefore be understood as saying that
one part of the exiles would be taken away in large and small sailing
vessels and another part would be exiled to Mannae in which area the
previous section showed exiled Israelite "Cimmerians" and Scythians to
have indeed appeared.

The Prophet Isaiah foresaw that in
the Last Days,

"The LORD shall set his hand again the second time to recover the
remnant of his people, that shall be left from Ashur, and from
Mitsrayim, from Patros, and from Cush, and from Shinar, and from
Hamath, and from the Isles of the Sea:" (Isaiah 11:11).

The said places were those to which the Ten Tribed Exiled Hebrews
were taken immediately after their exile or which they somehow
gravitated towards shortly afterwards and from there move on.. They
are not in every case those places which they are now found in and
from which they will directly return. In other words those who were in
the above places in the Last Days will return from wherever they will
be at the time. At all events, "Isles of the Sea" referred here
primarily to the Isles of Britain as explained elsewhere. Getting to
the "Isles of the Sea", implies travel by boat.

Another verse in the Book of Isaiah associated with the Ten Tribes'
exile says,

"At the first the lighter affliction was visited upon the land of
Zebulon and the land of Nephtali and (BUT) the latter one was made
heavier by way of the sea, beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations"
(Isaiah 9;10).

The expressions "Isles of the Sea", "Way of the
Sea", "large boats",
"fishing-boats", in connection with the exile of Northern Israel is
consistent with transportation by sea which was logistically possible
at that time and had been effected in other cases by Phoenician
seafarers. Israelites seem to have always participated in Phoenician
seafaring ventures.

Additional verses prove that the exiled Israelites were destined to
be found in the "Isles of the Sea" which were associated with
"Tarshish" in the Atlantic Ocean. Other passages show that from
Phoenician Tyre settlement was to be made in Tarshish. Both the
Israelites and Phoenicians had had a long standing connection with
Tarshish.

The extent of ancient international connections is demonstrated by
the Prophet Ezekiel's description of Phoenician Tyre and its maritime
extension. This has implications concerning the fate of the
Israelites after their exile since a portion of them were taken
overseas (as will be shown) by Phoenician agency.

The Prophet Hosea spoke of Ephraim together with Phoenician Tyre as
if their fates were entwined, and as if part of Ephraim was settled in
Tyre, and both suffered from the Assyrian conquest*6:

"Ephraim, as I saw Tyre, is planted in a pleasant place: but Ephraim
shall bring forth his children to the murderer " (Hosea 9:13).

"Ephraim is smitten, their root is dried up...

"My God will cast them away, because they did not hearken unto him:
and they shall be wanderers among the nations (Hosea 9:16-17).

In Amos (ch.1.), it is prophesied that the Phillistines (Ashkelon,
Ashdod, Gaza*7, Ekron) and Phoenicians (Tyre) will be punished for
betraying an entire exile into the hand of Edom who accompanied
Assyria. Both the Phillistines and Phoenicians were sea-farers*8. Tyre
is upbraided for not remembering the Covenant of brotherhood which
once existed between itself and Israel..

"...For three transgressions of Tyre ...I will not turn away the
punishment thereof: because they delivered up the whole captivity to
Edom, and remembered not the covenant of brothers" (Amos 1:9).

The deliverance to EDOM is connected to the transference by sea of a
portion of the exiles to the west, -to the lands of "Edom".

A Midrash names Daphne of Antiochea (on the north Syrian coast) as
one of the three places to which the Ten Tribes were exiled. Slouchz
believed that those exiled to "Daphne of Antiochea" represented
Israelites of Phoenician culture who disappeared and whose fate was
connected with their Phoenician connections.

Prior to the Exile:

All of the Tribes of Israel had been accustomed to ascend three
times a year to Jerusalem and there to offer sacrifice in the Temple. After
the secession King Jeroboam of northern Israel feared that continued
religious attachment to Jerusalem would eventually lead to the people
demanding political re unification with the south:

"Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and
said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold
your deities, O Israel, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt.
"And he set the one in Beth-el, and the other put he in Dan (1-Kings
12:28-29).

King Jeroboam had introduced new religious practices as a result of
which it was prophesied in his time:

"For The LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water,
and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their
fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have
made their sacred poles, provoking The LORD.

"And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam who did
sin, and who made Israel to sin. (1-Kings 14:15-16).

As soon as the Tribes of Israel split in two there occurred an
immediate decline in their position. The Tribe of Menasseh had two halves, one
half in lands west of the Jordan River, and the other half in the area
east of it. This second half was dominated by the clans of Machir and
his son Gilead.

Altogether, there were two and a half tribes east of the Jordan River.
These were Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Menasseh. In addition
segments of some of the other tribes were also to be found in this
region. At that time there were forests in the land, and there was
more greenery, more precipitation, the climate was colder and water
was more plentiful. The country east of the Jordan was highly
productive agriculturally and provided plentiful pasture and mineral
deposits.

The Hebrews' enjoyment of their patrimony was to be curtailed due to
war with Assyria. The lands of Israel were to be conquered and all of
the people exiled. The Tribes east of the Jordan were among the first
to be taken away.

"And the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria
and the spirit of Tiglath pileser king of Assyria, and he carried them
away, even the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half tribe of
Menasseh , and brought them unto Halah, and Habor, and Hara, and to
the river Gozan, unto this day. (1-Chronicles 5:25 26).

The above Biblical passage may be understood (in the Hebrew) to
infer that PUL king of Assyria and Tiglathpileser king of Assyria were one and
the same person and modern researchers (in the light of additional
evidence) so understand the case to be. Nevertheless, other evidence
indicates that Pul and Tiglathpileser were separate individuals and
the verse is also understandable in that way*4.
"PUL" may well have been another name for Tiglathpileser as well as
that of another monarch who preceded him which monarch ALSO had been
responsible for an earlier exile of Israelites. The implications for
the present study are that the tribes east of the Jordan may have been
exiled in two stages with some time between them and that the exile
and re-settlement may have began much earlier than commonly
supposed*5.

"In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-Pileser came and took
Ijon, Abel Beth Maachah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee
all the land of Nephtali; and he carried them captive to Assyria"
(2-Kings 15;29). How many Israelites were exiled has been debated but
the fact is that they all went, the northern Israelite Kingdom along
with its inhabitant disappeared from the Israelite area.
The exile of all Israel from the northern Galilee is recorded in an
inscription of Tiglathpileser who boasts of exiling all of "Bit
Khumria" except for a small remnant which he left around the city of
Samaria6 which city was then the capital and had been built by King
Omri. "Bit Khumria" was the name which the Assyrians gave to northern
Israel presumably in remembrance of King Omri ("Khumri" in Assyrian)
whose son Achab had once fought and defeated the Assyrian forces7.
Previously the area of Israel and Syria had been referred to in
Akkadian inscriptions as "The Land of Amurru". It will be demonstrated
that the exiled Israelites became identifiable with part of the
Cimmerians whose monarch was described by the Assyrians as "King of
Amurru" which implies "King of Israel".

The Assyrian ruler Tiglathpileser (745-727) was followed by
Shalmaneser (727-722) and he by Sargon (722-705) and then came Senacherib (
705-681). All of these kings participated in the exile and
resettlement of Israelites. After the eastern Tribes and the northern
ones had all been exiled, there remained only a rump state centred
around the city of Samaria in the south and these too were to be
exiled*8. 8.*"Then the king of Assyria came up throughout all the
land, and went up to Samaria, and besieged it three years.

"In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria, and
carried Israel away into Assyria, and placed them in Halah, and in
Habor, by the city of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes" (2-Kings
17;7-8).

"And the king of Assyria did carry away Israel, unto Assyria, and
put them in Halah, and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the
cities of the Medes.

"Because they obeyed not the voice of The LORD their God, but
transgressed his covenant, and all that Moses the servant of The LORD
commanded, and would not hear them, nor do them" (2-Kings 18;11- 12).

An Assyrian inscription recalls the taking of Samaria and the exile
of its inhabitants. This inscription says that the king of Assyria
took to himself more than 27,000 people and the rest he removed to
Assyria. The inscription may be understood to mean NOT (as is commonly
claimed) that Sargon took only 27,000 plus people from Samaria into
captivity BUT rather that Sargon took ca. 27,000 people for his own
(military) purposes and the remainder of the people he settled in
Assyria9*10.

10.* "I counted as spoil [2)7,280 people..and the rest of them I
resettled in Assyria".

On the basis of this inscription it is sometimes claimed (even in
Encyclopedias!!) that not many more than 27,000 were ever actually
exiled!!! This claim belies the facts: The inscription applies only to
remnants of city of Samaria after a siege of several years whereas
other Assyrian inscriptions mention the exile of all Israelite
inhabitants from other areas of the country. The inscription itself
appears most readily understandable as saying that the 27,000 plus
were taken by the king for his own personal or military needs and all
of the remainder were packed off maybe even without bothering to count
them

The inscription is also rendered as;

"I took as booty 27,290 people who lived there. I formed a unit of
50 chariotry from them .."

Another version says 200 chariotry instead of 50, and adds, "and I
settled the rest in Assyria." S..Dalley (p.36) renders the Nimrud prism
account of Sargon thusly:

"The Samarians who had [conspired] against the king [ my predecessor]
not to endure servitude nor to bring tribute, became angry and did
battle. With the army of the great gods my lords I fought against
them. I counted as spoil [x+]7,280 people including [their] chariotry
and the gods their help. I formed a unit of 200 chariots from them
as part of my royal army, and I resettled the rest of them in Assyria.
I repopulated Samaria more than before, and put into it people from
the countries which I had conquered".

Other renditions of this inscription (such as that of H.Tadmor)
similarly show that it is possible to read the inscription as saying
that Sargon took for his own purposes more than 27,000 captives and
the rest of them (i.e. all those that remained apart from the 27,000)
he transported to Assyria.

The people of Samaria were besieged and exiled after all the rest of
their brethren had already been taken away en masse.
Following the exile of Samaria, the Bible says that, "there was none
left but the tribe of Judah only" (2-Kings 17;18). The Talmud12 and
Midrashim13 also speak of the Lost Ten Tribes having all been exiled.
One late Midrash14 suggests that one in eight remained but the exact
meaning of this source is uncertain. Here and there, there do exist
hints that a small percentage of the northern tribes remained and
became assimilated amongst the Jews of Judah. Archaeologists have
discovered a neighbourhood in Jerusalem which apparently was settled
by refugees from northern Israel15*16. These newcomers show the strong
influence of Egyptian and foreign culture and for a while appear to
have practiced cremation which is forbidden by Jewish Law. Also
Levites and other religious refugees had began to drift southward long
before the Assyrian invasion. Nevertheless, SINCE NOTHING REALLY
SIGNIFICANT REMAINED OF THEM THE OVERWHELMING MAJORITY MUST HAVE GONE
INTO EXILE AS THE BIBLE SAYS THEY DID!!

Archaeological excavations also prove the completeness of
deportation. For the period after the Assyrian conquest of Israel there is a gap in
archaeological finds everywhere with accompanying traces of burning
and destruction. For some time afterwards there is no real new
settlement and when organised habitation does begin it is small and
impoverished, at least at first and nowhere can it be ascribed to the
previous Israelite dwellers*17.

In addition to the exile of the northern Israelites, Sennacherib
boasted of having conquered cities in Judah and deported more than
200,000 people. This event is spoken of in Midrashim18 and other
sources of Jewish tradition even though it is merely hinted at in the
Bible:

"Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah did Sennacherib king
of Assyria come up against all the fenced cities of Judah and took
them" (2-Kings 18:13).

The Prophet Isaiah had predicted that after all the Assyrian
Exilations of northern Israel and Judah were completed only one in ten of the
original population would remain and these apparently would be those
in Judah who would later endure an additional exile of their own:
"If there yet remain a tenth in it, it also shall be consumed"
(Isaiah 6:13).

The Jews who remained in Judah were destined to be exiled to Babylon
and from there to return under the leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah.
The Jews of Judah who had been exiled to Babylon did however retain
consciousness of their national identity whereas the others ultimately
did not. Those Jews who had been taken into exile previously by
Sennacherib remained unheard of. They assumedly joined their brothers
from the Ten Tribes and became assimilated with them .

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

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